Your Fave MIGHT Be Catholic: Miguel RiveraKnown for: Main character of Coco, the beloved animated fi

Your Fave MIGHT Be Catholic: Miguel Rivera

Known for: Main character of Coco, the beloved animated film by Pixar Animation Studios centered around Dia de Los Muertos. He is a child who aspires to be a great musician just like the famed musician & singer Ernesto De La Cruz, but his family straight up forbids any kinds of music & insists he follow in their shoe making business. On the night of Dia de Los Muertos (a.k.a. “Day of the Dead”), he tries to steal a guitar from Ernesto De La Cruz’s memorial, & thus he is cursed & stuck in the Land of the Dead. Only a blessing from his deceased family can bring him back to the Land of the Living, but their oppressive ban on music forces Miguel to try & receive a blessing from Ernesto De La Cruz. Thus, he teams up with the charming former musician Héctor & his dog Dante to get to De La Cruz’s mansion party to receive his blessing. Miguel is a good child who loves his family (being especially close to his great grandmother, Mama Coco), but his passion for music causes conflict with the other members of his family, & it’s over the course of the film where he learns why his family hates music. *SPOILERS* It’s also through his adventures where he learns where his passion for music comes from - he learns that Héctor is his true great great grandfather, that he is the real musical genius behind Ernesto De La Cruz’s music, & uses music to help revive Mama Coco’s fading memories to help save Héctor from fading away forever as well as make amends with his family. *SPOILERS*

Why I say MIGHT as opposed to IS: Coco is a very interesting film to discuss, & with the topic of religion like this blog explores, this instance gets very confusing. On the one hand, a cross can be seen hanging from the wall in Mama Coco’s room, which can be seen here, & thus indicates that the Rivera family is very religious. Adding to this, the dominant religion of Mexico (the film’s setting) is Roman Catholicism, which makes the case stronger. In the film itself, Miguel even admits that initially he thought the traditions described in Dia de Los Muertos were make believe “like vitamins”, but after seeing the afterlife itself, it’s clear that he is certainly a believer. This can be seen in a clip found here. Last, & most importantly, the film makes it very VERY clear that there is an afterlife, & one of the main fundamental beliefs of Catholicism & all of Christianity in general is that there’s an afterlife after we die. But now this is where things get confusing…. Despite the film making it clear the afterlife is real, The Land of the Dead is not the same afterlife as described in Catholic doctrine - i.e. Heaven, Hell, & Purgatory. It seems to be based on traditional Mexican culture, which most likely dates back to before Christianity arrived in Mexico, & thus it’s sort of contradictory with the current religious beliefs. The film itself doesn’t explore this at all, & so we don’t really know how exactly the current religious beliefs work with regards to the Land of the Dead, which is based on memories & the importance of remembering our loved ones & who we are (which again, is based on real Mexican traditions). So, to conclude, it’s really hard to tell if the Rivera family is a loyal Catholic family, or if at the end of the film they practice a new religion based on the Land of the Dead.

(On a separate note: the earlier animated Dia de Los Muertos film The Book of Life has a very similar problem to Coco - Catholic nuns are seen as recurring extras in the film’s setting, but then they establish that there are three deities that exist: La Muerta the goddess who runs The Land of the Remembered, Xibalba the god who runs The Land of the Forgotten, & The Candle Maker who binds the universe together & owns the titular book. It’s arguably even more confusing, as Catholic beliefs make it super crystal clear that there is only ONE God, & yet that film shows Catholicism existing in a mythology with three deities.)

If this post is wrong: If this post is wrong & director Lee Unkrich or anyone else from Pixar Animation Studios have stated that the religious beliefs of Coco are ONLY surrounded around the lore involving the Land of the Dead, then please let me know in a polite ask, & I will have this post altered right away.